International Journal of Trend in Research and Development, Volume 5(2), ISSN: 2394-9333 www.ijtrd.com Effects of Indoor Air Pollution and How To Control Them

Monika Assistant Professor at Chandigarh College of Architecture, Chandigarh, India

Abstract: In the last two decades pollution level in many cities 3. pull outside polluted air from vents, cracks and has broken all previous records. The air quality in the city has openings and increase dust, pollen etc., been dropped it to a level that can cause breathing discomfort 4. may results in “Sick building syndrome”. to people with lungs, asthma and heart diseases. Assessment of People who spend 70-90% of their time indoor may face air pollution in Indian cities (Jan., 2017) revealed that 1.2 various health problems due to indoor air pollution. million persons die every year due to outdoor air pollution in India. As a result of these, where people love to go outside for B. Sources of pollution in typical residential building enjoyment, now they have closed themselves in the walls of Sources of emissions that cause indoor air pollution: concrete. Majority of people spend the bulk of their time Emission indoors whether it’s at home or working in an office Source Formalde- Xylen/ Benzene Ammonia Alcohol Ace- environment. In today scenario, the buildings are designed on hyde toulene tone the concept of energy efficient. It has been determined that Adhesives     1 these air- tight sealing of building leads to various health Bioeffluents     Carpeting  problems such as itchy eyes, skin rashes, headache, allergy etc. Caulking     Man himself makes a source of indoor air pollution. Aim is to compounds examine how indoor plants can help to reduce indoor air Ceiling tiles     Cleaning  pollution. products Cosmetics   Keywords: Indoor plants, Air pollution, Indoor air quality. Draperies  Electro    I. INTRODUCTION photographic printers Indoor air pollution is becoming the biggest environmental Fabrics  problem of the world. There is a myth that air pollution occurs Facial tissue  either in outdoor environment or in industrial environment. If Floor     coverings you think that you are safe at home and away from outside Grocery bags  pollution. The truth is, you are not. Air inside the conditioned Nail polish  space can be substantially more polluted than outdoor air. remover Office  Every year, 4.3 million people die due to the exposure of correction household air pollution caused by indoor open air (WHO, fluid 2015). Paints     Paper towels  Indoor air pollution came to notice when more than hundred Particle board     Stains and     people fell sick within fifteen minutes of entering the varnishes headquarters of EPA building at Washington D.C., due to Upholstery  accumulation of carbon monoxide and poor ventilation. After Wall    occurrence of such incidences, concept of IAQ was first coverings 1 substances emitted by people through normal biological processes such introduced among scientific community in 1980. as respiration. II. INDOOR AIR QUALITY Source: B.C. Wolverton, PhD; How to grow fresh air; Penguin, 1997. It refers to the nature of the conditioned (heat/cool) air that circulates throughout space/area, where we work and live i.e. C. Poorly designed air conditoing and ventilation system the air we breathe most of the time. It may results into the production of fungi, molds and other sickness causing microbes. III. SOURCES OF INDOOR AIR POLLUTION Indoor pollution may be result of air tightness of buildings, IV. EFFECTS OF INDOOR AIR POLLUTION poorly designed, air conditioning and ventilation systems, WHO has reported in his data of 2015 that more people indoor sources of pollution and outdoor sources of pollution. It died in 2013 was due to air pollution which indicates that can be ten times worse than outdoor air pollution. indoor air pollution is much more dangerous.

A. Air tightness of building

In response to making building energy efficient and conserve energy resources, buildings and homes are designed having tighter construction which seal it from outside air. It causes inadequate supply of fresh air, as a result, negative pressure develops which causes 1. ground level pollutants (CO, Radon etc. to be drawn inside the building), 2. release of odour ( Bioaerosols),

IJTRD | Mar - Apr 2018 Available [email protected] 568 International Journal of Trend in Research and Development, Volume 5(2), ISSN: 2394-9333 www.ijtrd.com Household air pollution caused by burning solid fuels like relative humidity by 5%, if less than 2% of space is occupied coal, wood and dung ambient air pollution caused by by the plant. emissions from power generation, transportation, agriculture D. Particulate matter: etc. Adding plants to the periphery of a room reduced Source: WHO report, 2015 particulate matter deposition by as much as 20%, even in Using of synthetic materials such as formaldehyde, center of the room many meters from the plants. pressed wood products, surface finishes etc. in the construction E. Acoustics: of furniture or other components of buildings are the primary source of indoor air pollution. People who are exposed to Plants can reflect, diffract, or absorb sounds, depending on these, can develop serious symptoms including eye, nose, the frequency. Generally, the researchers found that plants asthma, headache, skin irritation etc. worked best at reducing high frequencies sounds in rooms with hard surfaces; the effect was similar to adding carpet. A recent survey conducted by Artemis Hospitals at Gurgaon as part of Clean Air India Movement (CLAIM) says that about 76 F. Well-being: per cent of the offices and houses, 3 had PM level far above 2.5 the normal (>60 μg/m). Due to unhealthy IAQ, about 31 Presence of plants in the room makes human more per cent of the respondents had some kind of airway disease attentive, friendly. It provide aesthetic and make it inviting place to live or work. and 46 per cent people were found to have symptoms suggesting a respiratory disease (Hindu, 2016). The pollutant G. Stress reduction: released indoors is 1,000 times more likely to affect human lungs than a pollutant released outdoors. Images of nature, interior plants evoke stress reducing effects that are similar to those evoked by nature. V. INDOOR PLANT H. Productivity: Bringing a bit of nature indoors is the best way to improve the quality of indoor air. The International Space Station – Productivity has been shown to be higher when plants are NASA discovered that plants help reduce VOC’s (volatile present. People may respond significantly more quickly. It organic chemicals/ compounds) and can be efficient way to helps to improve employee performance and reduce filter air in living compartments. absenteeism. I. Health improvement: Plants absorb volatile organic compounds from the air into The positive benefits of plants are not simply associated their leaves and then translocate them to their root zone, where with their decorative value, it can use as a distraction to help microbes break them down. Microorganisms in the soil can use keep one's mind off of the discomfort, because colorful objects trace amounts of pollutants as a food source. Some organic were not as effective in influencing pain tolerance. chemicals absorbed by plants from the air are destroyed by the VII. SELECTION OF INDOOR PLANT plant’s own biological processes. The plant’s roots take up aqueous solutions in the rooting media. Given that air also Selection of indoor plants to mitigate air pollution in offices reaches plant roots, uptake by root tissues is another means by and homes depends not only on their ability to clean the air but which air can be purified. also on their growth habit. NASA scientists suggests that the most sophisticated pollution-absorbing device in your home is VI. BENEFITS OF INDOOR PLANT a potted plant which are in the following ways: Today there are numerous scientific studies documenting A. Areca palm(Dypsis lutescens): the benefits of indoor plant (for summaries, see: Lohr, 2000; Pearson-Mims and Lohr, 2000; Relf and Lohr, 2003). The Areca palm is the best plant for removing a variety of range of benefits that has been documented is broad: air toxins (formaldehyde). It likes bright, indirect light. Because of quality is improved (Wood et al., 2002), stress is lowered a high transpiration rate, it adds a lot of humidity to the air and (Dijkstra et al., 2008), recovery from illness is faster (Ulrich, needs to be watered regularly. 1984), mental fatigue is reduced (Tennessen and Cimprich, B. Snake plant (Sansevieria trifasciata): 1995), and productivity is higher (Lohr et al., 1996) which are in the following ways: It clears smog, formaldehyde, trichloroethylene from air. It produces oxygen and removes carbon dioxide at night time, A. Indoor air quality: making it ideal for bedrooms and other light room. Plants release oxygen and moisture into the air. Some of C. Spider plant (Chlorophytum comosum): these changes to the environment can increase the health and comfort level for humans in enclosed environments. It removes smog, formaldehyde, benzene and xylene found in auto exhaust, synthetic perfume and paint. NASA study B. Air pollutant: found that this plant can remove 96% of carbon monoxide The studies showed that many common foliage plants within a sealed chamber. It prefers medium to bright light but reduced levels of some interior pollutants, including avoid extended amount of direct sun. formaldehyde and carbon monoxide. D. Weeping fig (Ficus benjamina): C. Relative humidity: It removes formaldehyde, xylene and fluoene. They enjoy full When buildings are being heated, the relative humidity of to semi-sun and moist soil. the inside air is often below the range recommended for human comfort i.e. 30-60%. Presence of plants may increase the

IJTRD | Mar - Apr 2018 Available [email protected] 569 International Journal of Trend in Research and Development, Volume 5(2), ISSN: 2394-9333 www.ijtrd.com E. Broadleaf Lady Palm (Rhapis excelsa): level of spaces, increase in - carbon dioxide, temperature, humidity, odor and bioaerosols. It helps to filter out ammonia, a chemical found in cleaning products. As they're also good with humidity and thrive in low We can conclude that indoor plants are not just light, they're best placed in the bathroom. improving your indoor aesthetic but also provide health benefits. Due to lack of awareness, people don’t know how to F. Aloe vera (Aloe barbadensis): mitigate these indoor air pollution. Living in green and It is easy to grow in indoor sunlight, and needs to be flowering plants have an amazing ability to remove a number watered only once a week. Aloe helps to keep your home free of truly awful toxic chemicals from the air. You can use plants from benzene, which is commonly found in paint and certain in your home or office to improve the quality of the air and to chemical cleaners. make it a more pleasant place to live in and work, where people feel better, perform better and enjoy life more. In G. Rubber plant (Ficus robusta): developing countries, plant will serve as a cost-effective tool to This houseplant releases more oxygen than most other mitigate indoor air pollution where expensive pollution plants, and purifies indoor air by removing chemicals such as mitigation technology may not be economically feasible. formaldehyde. It grow well indoors, preferring moderate light. References H. Dragon plant (Dracaena marginata): [1] Dahiya, S., Myllyvirta, L., & Sivalingam, N. (2017). Airpocalypse: Assessment of air pollution in Indian cities. New The dragon tree likes indirect sunlight, and need to be Delhi: GPET. watered sparingly. It eliminates formaldehyde, xylene, toluene, [2] Heather L.Papinchak, E. H. (April-June 2009). Effectiveness of benzene, and trichloroethylene. houseplants in reducing the indoor air pollutant ozone (Vol. 19). [3] I.Lohr, V. (2010). What are the benefits of plants indoors and I. Money plant/ golden pothos (Epipremnum aureum): why do we respond positively to them? 675-682. Retrieved from It is also considered one of the most effective indoor air www.actahort.org [4] (2016). International Summit. New Delhi: Indian Pollution purifiers for removing common toxins. It eliminates Control Association. formaldehyde, xylene, toluene, benzene, carbon monoxide. [5] Kankaria, A., Nongkynrih, B., & Gupta, S. K. (Oct.-Dec. 2014). J. Boston fern (Nephrolepis exaltata “Bostoniensis”): Indoor air pollution in India: Implications on health and its control. Indian Journal Community Medical, 203-207. It act as act as a natural air humidifier, the Boston Fern [6] Torpy, F., & Zavattaro, M. (2018). Bench- study of green wall removes formaldehyde and is a general air purifier. plants for indoor air pollution reduction. Journal of living architecture, 5, 1-15. CONCLUSION [7] Wolverion, B., Johnson, A., & Bounds, K. (1989). Interior landscape plants for indoor air pollution abatement. NASA. We came to know that how enclosed spaces inhabited by humans produce following effects such as reduction in oxygen

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